Holden State Trooper charges continued

By Patricia Roy

A State Police captain assigned to Troop C in Holden has admitted to facts sufficient for a guilty finding in charges of failing to stop for police and negligent driving.

The charges stem from an incident around midnight on Nov. 20, 2011 when Capt. Thomas McCarthy refused to immediately pull his car over for a Saugus police who saw him driving erratically. The patrolman who eventually stopped him noted McCarthy’s breath smelled of alcohol and he found an empty beer bottle and two unopened bottles in the car.

On July 16, Judge Albert Conlon of Lynn District Court continued the case without a finding for six months and placed McCarthy on administrative probation. McCarthy received the same ruling for the negligent driving charges and ordered to pay standard court fees of about $350, Carrie Kimball Monahan, communications director for Essex Co. District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett said.

Prosecutor Anna Zalewski had asked for guilty findings for both charges with one year’s probation. She also requested that McCarthy refrain from drinking alcohol, be subject to random alcohol screenings and participate in a safe driving program.

Instead, McCarthy's case will be dismissed if he stays out of trouble for the next six months.

A driving under the influence charged was dropped in January because police did not perform a field sobriety test, Monahan said.

A State Police spokesman confirmed that McCarthy is still assigned to Troop C, but he continues to be suspended without pay.